


Of Stories Yet Untold

by Kyriadamorte



Series: Colemance - OMLIT verse [2]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: AKA the author is trying not to punish her readers, F/M, for the fact that she's arse at updating multichapter works in a timely fashion
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-23
Updated: 2018-07-08
Packaged: 2019-05-27 12:15:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15024410
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kyriadamorte/pseuds/Kyriadamorte
Summary: A collection of excerpts from unpublished chapters of Of Mages Locked in Towers.





	1. From the Winter Palace

**Author's Note:**

> I know.....It's been 84 years.....
> 
> I'm very sorry about the delay, but because I actually do have a lot written, I'm thinking I'm going to publish the bits that I can wrangle into something like an acceptable vignette form that I can publish here. At some point it will all be worked into one coherent story in OMLIT, but, until then, people who don't mind be spoiled a bit and want more content can read it here and those who do want to wait to read the whole story can.

Excerpt from the Winter palace 

 

* * *

 

 

“I’ve read quite a lot about the symbolism of the mask designs and the history behind the split between full-masks and half-“ she catches his eyes, peering up at her askance from underneath the hat he has reclaimed now that their duties are over and he is free from Josephine’s uniform mandate.

 

“I don’t really understand it either,” she finishes, softer.

 

They look at each other for a few beats before Cole speaks.

 

“You’re happy, but you’re not,” he says, uncertainly. “Hands are clean, a compromise, but it still feels dirty.”

 

“I saved the three of them, yes…but I didn’t save any of the servants that got caught up in their mess, did I?” She looks out over the balcony. “I don’t know how much you heard from the three of them, but none of them sounded the least bit sorry.Tonight isn’t going to be the last time innocents die so that they can play at politics.”

“No.But killing them wouldn’t have stopped it either, I don’t think.”

 

She hums noncommittally.It still doesn’t feel great, having a hand in letting those three hang on to power, but she does feel marginally better.Cole must sense this because he doesn’t press further.

 

The song changes inside to an upbeat tune that Esther remembers vaguely form her days before the grain tower.She’s a bit surprised that Halamshiral would play a song no longer in fashion.She starts humming, fingers tapping on the railing.

 

“Pages and pages of princesses in golden gowns, glittering.” Cole says in a hushed voice next to her. “All of them got to dance, but never you.Talmund’s dance master said it would be your turn next year, but it wasn’t.”

 

She turns to look at him.He’s playing with his finger nails, staring at his hands when he speaks again, “You should ask Cullen to dance.He’d say yes. To you.”

 

“Would you?”

 

He looks at her again, this time full in the face, eyes wide, not hiding behind his hat for once.His mouth is slightly open.

 

“Would it make you happy?” he asks.

 

“Yes.I think so.Would it make _you_ happy?”

 

The corner of his mouth quirks in a shy smile.“Yes,” he says softly.“I think so.”

 

She takes his hand in hers and places the other at her waist.His fingers are warm, warmer than most would suspect.When he kills, it's so graceful, a dance in and of itself.Esther remembers when he'd taught her to fade step, darting and twirling about the grain tower with ease. Now he’s staring at his feet, brow furrowed and they’re about half a beat behind the music. After about a minute, he steps on her foot and lets go completely, retreating back into himself, shoulders hunched, arms wrapped around his middle.

 

"Sorry...my feet don't listen as well as I want them to."

 

"It's alright," Esther says, easing both his hands off of his waist and onto her own.She puts her arms around his neck and they stop trying to follow the steps to the dances Josephine has been teaching them for the past month.Instead, they sway back and forth in this odd little not-quite-hug. 

 

"We danced like this once before," she says after a while, speaking to the buttons on his chest instead of his face. "I'd just finished reading _The_ _Scarlet Fox_ and there was a masquerade ball in it.We played pretend in the fade, but neither of us really knew how to dance."

 

"I wish I remembered," Cole says softly.

 

"It's alright.I'm not _too_ sad about it anymore.I get to know you now and that's more than I thought I would ever get."

 

"That's good, but I meant I wished for _me_."

 

"Oh."

 

Esther pulls a little closer to him at that, hugs him a little tighter and after a moment or so he hugs her a little tighter too so her head is resting on his chest.

 

"I can hear your heart beat," she says, glancing up at him, knowing he will find it as interesting as every other development he's undergone since choosing to become more human.

 

"What's it saying?" Cole asks into her hair.

 

"Thump thump.Thump thump.Anything deeper than that is a bit beyond me, I'm afraid."

 

They stay like that even after the next two songs have ended.

 

When Dorian finds them, he raises his eyebrows at them before giving them both a small smirk."Did you two have fun?"

 

"Yes," Esther says, beaming.

 

"There were so many wonderful hats!"

 

"Did our lovely Inquisitor manage to persuade you to dance?Or have you been skulking around this whole time?"

 

"We danced, but I stepped on her feet.Dancing is hard... you have to listen with your feet as well as your heart.There's a lot to do all at once."

 

"Shall I tell our lovely ambassador that you are ready to go or would you like a few more moments to...dance?"

 

He said the word dance in a way that Esther knows (now) means he's thinking of something else.Probably sex.

 

"No, no, I'm ready," she says, slipping from Cole's arms before taking his hand in hers."Let's get out of this hell-hole.What about you, Cole?"

 

"There are too many old hurts here. _Hide in the pantry, don't let them know I've burnt the bread again.Laces, laces pulling ever tighter like a straight jacket. Poisoning mother's favorite-"_ Cole catches himself mid-sentence and looks down at where their hands are joined as if he's just realized they are touching.

 

He looks back up at Dorian and says, "Yes, I'm ready to go now."

 


	2. Cole and the shrinking tent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takes place post-main game, pre-Trespasser, while Esther and Cole are on an adventure (the specifics of which are top-secret for now!).

When they return to their tent later, Cole is surprised to find that it has grown smaller. He thought Dorian said that objects don’t normally do that sort of thing outside of the Fade, but it must have, because his hand keeps brushing against Esther’s hand and he can feel the heat coming off her body and no matter which way he lies he seems to be much closer to her than normal.He’s about to ask her about it when she turns on her side towards him, her body forming a nearly-perfect S.

 

“Are you alright?” she asks, scanning his face.He can feel that she’s genuinely concerned about him, her compassion, as it so often does, wrapping around him like a warm blanket - doubly so because it’s directed towards him.It’s not as loud as it once was, but it still sends a pleasant tingle up his back.His body responds with a shiver and sheen of goosebumps.

 

But she’s laughing at him a bit too, he thinks.He can see it - there, in the corner of her mouth.

 

And now he’s looking at her mouth.

 

Oh.Perhaps the tent hasn’t changed so much after all.

 

“I- yes,” he answers, when he remembers she’s asked him a question.

 

He thinks he should say more, but the words won’t come.Well, some words do, but he doesn’t let them out because Esther wouldn’t want most of the words he heard mages whisper to each other in the heights of hidden passion.Ser Aldin has ruined all talk about bosoms ( _Such a shame to hide away such a nice set of tits.Go ahead, crazy, give us a peek)_ , lovely though hers are and he doesn’t have enough information to comment on-

 

Besides.He’s fairly certain it would be rude.

 

It’s alright, though, because Esther brave and wonderful and even though she’s nervous (he can feel it tugging at him, but he can’t make out the specifics) she asks, “Would you like to kiss for a little bit?”

 

He smiles because _yes,_ yes he would and of course Esther would know even before he did; so often it feels that she's in his head as often as he's in hers.

 

He turns to mirror her and puts his hand on her face to gently guide it towards his own and their noses don’t even bump at all.They must be improving.

 

It starts slow, it always does, which is nice and then she does that thing again where she sucks gently on one of his lips and it shoots through him just as strongly as it did before.Not just surprise, then.He pulls back after a bit and tries it on her to see if she likes it, too.She makes a little ‘mrmp’ noise and pulls him a little closer, fingers scratching lightly at his neck.Her chest is pressed up against his and, yes, she really does have nice bosoms.


End file.
